If you’ve got bubbles on the brain
these days, you’re not alone.More
sparkling wine will be sold this week than during any other period of the
year.It’s tough to beat fizz in the
glass to ring in a new year.

Champagne, of course, is the crowning
jewel in the bubbly business; over the centuries, this region in northern
France has produced some of the most storied releases in the wine industry,
with titles like Veuve Clicquot, Perrier-Jouet and Krug.Other regions in France, and other countries,
dabble in sparkling wine, too, of course, offering the thirsty celebrant
options like prosecco from Italy, cava from Spain and sekt from Germany.

And there’s California, where the
quality growing regions of Napa and Sonoma, mainly, have attracted lucrative
Champagne houses like Tattinger, Roederer and Moet & Chandon to make
American bubbly and where regional labels like J, Gloria Ferrer and Schramsberg
have been producing award-winning sparklers for decades.

But if there’s a rising star in this
industry, it may well be Santa Barbara County, where more winemakers are making
sparkling wine today – close to 15, according to figures from the Santa Barbara
County Vintners Association – than ever before.

“No one grows pinot noir and chardonnay
better than Santa Barbara County,” says SBCVA executive director Jim Fiolek,
referencing the two primary grape players in conventional sparkling wine
production.“But there are new things
happening here, too, and the diversity we claim here is also expressed in the
diversity of our sparkling wines.”

Indeed, the method of sparkling wine
production in Santa Barbra County is as diverse as the region itself.Some wineries produce them sporadically, on
years when they feel grapes pass muster or when fruit is available to them,
while others make it an annual endeavor.Some produce it at their own, local facility while a few ship grapes
picked locally to get the sparkling treatment in other counties.Some use strict, traditional methods while a
handful thrill in putting bubbles in bottle by thinking well outside the box.

One of the earliest productions of
Santa Barbara bubbles belongs to pioneer winemaker Chris Whitcraft, who sold
wine at the popular Mayfare wine shop in Montecito in the mid 1970s and who
made his first wines in 1978.His first
sparkling wine hit the marketplace in 1982 and he only made two more bubblies
after that, in vintage years 1993 and 2000.“There are only six bottles of the 2000 sparkling left,” says his son,
Drake Whitcraft, who took over production for Whitcraft Winery when his father
retired some five years ago.The wine
sold for $120.

Whitcraft Winery makes sparkling wine
sporadically.“On years when we get grapes
with high acids and low sugars,” says the younger Whitcraft.Lower sugars translate to lower alcohols, and
Whitcraft puts the ideal per-volume alcohol content for sparklers at 12.5%.The next installment in Whitcraft bubbly –
the fourth in its history – is a 2009 Brut Rosé made with pinot noir grapes
from the legendary Morning Dew Ranch in Anderson Valley.It’ll be bottled in January and released
(mostly to the Whitcraft wine club) in summer of 2015.

“To do sparkling wine right, it can
take five or six years,” says Whitcraft, who’s crafting his sparkler entirely
by hand at his downtown Santa Barbara winemaking facility.“When you have a small production – I’m doing
just two barrels, so 40 to 50 cases – then it’s easier to do it onsite.”He’s got specialized equipment – like a crown
capper and a champagne corker – at his winery.And he adds, “Everything in small batches turns out better anyway.”

The men behind the celebrated
Brewer-Clifton label – Greg Brewer and Steve Clifton – are part of this early
history, too.The brand’s first release
in 1993, actually, was a sparkling wine; they’ve gone on to gain fame mainly
for vineyard-designate pinot noir and chardonnay.Also an intermittent endeavor, Brewer-Clifton
just released its first sparkling wine in 12 years, a 2010 vintage bottling
made with chardonnay grapes from the 3-D Vineyard in Santa Barbara’s Santa Rita
Hills.The acclaim came quickly: an
impressive 92 points from critic Stephen Tanzer’s respected publication, the
International Wine Cellar.It sells for
$64.

Like Whitcraft, the Brewer-Clifton team
makes their bubbles by hand and onsite, at their Lompoc facility; their
production hovers around a manageable 70 cases.And, like Whitcraft, they employ very traditional techniques – a methode champenoise, emulating standards
of practice established by the classic houses of Champagne.

To oversimplify it: this methode starts with a blend of still
wines – a cuvée of chardonnay, for
example.Yeast and sugar are added and
the bottles are stoppered and laid down to rest (known as “en tirage”) while
the yeast consumes the sugar and those classy carbon dioxide bubbles come to
life.As carbonated wine forms, so does
a deposit of yeast.So bottles are
placed on A-frame racks – riddling racks – to move that sediment toward the
neck for eventual removal; this slow and labor-intensive process can take
months.Disgorging is next, where the
bottles are chilled and caps are removed in skillfully swift fashion to allow
the deposit to escape – sometimes in explosive fashion – while keeping the
effervescent wine inside.The bottle is
then corked; that classic mushroom shape of the Champagne cork ensures a secure
seal, and, with 75 to 90 PSI of pressure within the bottle, the wire caging
helps prevent a premature pop.

“They’re little bombs,” says winemaker
Norm Yost, with a laugh, “so I have to be very careful.But I’ve been pretty lucky so far.”

These days, Mr. Yost may well be the
standard for Santa Barbara sparkling wine production.His yearly lineup of four unique sparklers,
known collectively as Goat Bubbles, has attained a type of cult status,
garnering the respect of professional counterparts and the acclaim of
consumers.His Club Celebrate ships two
bottles of each bubbly, which range in price from $34-$38, four times a year.

Mr. Yost sources his grapes from three
Santa Barbara County vineyards: Solomon Hills, Clos Pepe and Sierra Madre (he
also makes private-label sparkling wines for the latter two). “More than grapes
themselves, I think it’s more about which sites are better suited for sparkling
wine,” he says.“Some vineyards lend
themselves to having beautiful acids and great aromatics and great flavors at
lower sugars.That’s the biggest key.”

All Goat Bubbles are made by hand at
the Flying Goat Cellars facility in Lompoc.Adding bubbly in 2005 to what was then a pinot noir-only venture meant
investing in specialized equipment, though he managed to acquire several items
– like neutral barrels to age his cuvees, crown cappers and riddling racks –
locally.He had to go well outside the
area for some specialty items, like his hand corker and wire hooder.And his disgorging equipment?“We put that together via Home Depot,” Mr.
Yost quips.

But investment and labor aside, bubbles
have been good for business.“It gives
us another product to set us apart, something different, and because it’s light
and fresh and fun, people like it,” says Mr. Yost, who adds that seven out of
10 of his sparkling wine customers are women.

At Riverbench Winery in Santa Maria,
general manager Laura Mohseni credits Norm Yost with inspiring their
portfolio’s biggest new addition: three yearly sparklers under the playfully
dubbed label, Cork Jumper.A
chardonnay-based sparkler experiment in 2008 was so well-received, the winery
went full-steam ahead this year with a production of two chardonnay-based and
one pinot noir-based sparkling wines.Using proprietary fruit exclusively, winemaker Clarissa Nagy begins by
crafting still wine cuvees onsite.But
the blends are then trucked up north, to Napa, where 5th-generation champagne
maker Gerard Ployez employs those strict traditional methods to bring them to
fizzy life.With an annual production
that exceeds 500 cases, undertaking the methode
champenoise locally would be “extremely expensive,” says Mrs. Mohseni, “and
it would require a lot of equipment and a lot of space.”The Cork Jumper wines cost between $32 and
$45.

Lucas & Lewellen Winery exports for
their sparkler, too, although they overnight grapes, not juice, in refrigerated
trucks to a facility in Hopland, north of Napa, called Rack and Riddle.“A lot of their staff came from J, so they
know how to make sparkling wine,” says grape growing pioneer Louie Lucas.But for Mr. Lucas, who tends to more than two
dozen wine grape varieties throughout the county, the magic lies in the
fruit.“Our grapes here are perfect for
sparkling: good acidity, low pH and great flavor,” he says.Mr. Lucas sold Santa Barbara County grapes to
sparkling wine maker Korbell as far back as the 1970s, and his own label, which
he founded with business partner and retired judge Royce Lewellen, released its
first sparkler in 2000.Since then, a
handful of vintages have resulted in bubbly, each to the tune of 600
cases.But with the amazing success of
their 2008 Brut Sparkling Wine – Gold Medal and
Best of Class at the Orange Co. Wine Competition, Central Coast Wine
Competition and California State Fair – bubbly is now an annual project, and
Mr. Lucas has doubled yearly output.The
’08 sparkler, a 50-50 blend of pinot noir and chardonnay grapes from Los
Alamos, sells for $38, and only a few cases remain.

And while the Burgundian classics –
pinot and chardonnay – reign supreme in Santa Barbara’s sparkling wine
production, a handful of innovative producers are adding effervescent zest to
other local varieties.Steve Clifton
makes a sparkling nebbiolo ($46) for his Palmina Label, Tessa Marie Parker of
Tessa Marie Wines has a sparkling vermentino ($35) and Casa Dumetz Wines’ Sonja
Magdevski is going on her third year putting out a sparkling syrah ($35).

“It’s been a total crowd pleaser,” says
Ms. Magdesvki, whose inaugural 2010 release of 25 cases sold out in three
months.She made 75 cases in 2011, and
upped production to 100 cases this year.And while she admits that the wine is “super full-bodied and lush,” she
makes its greatest asset clear: “It’s a fun, fun, yummy wine.And just fun, fun, fun!”Going less than traditional with such a
traditional beverage was “daunting at first,” Ms. Magdevski admits.But she was buoyed by the growing popularity
of sparkling shiraz wines out of Australia and a successful local sparkling
syrah project by Municipal Winemakers’ Dave Potter.Her sparkling winemaking is less than
traditional, too.

“I use encapsulated yeast beads,” says
Ms. Magdevski.“You do your
fermentation, add them individually – a half-teaspoon per bottle, and they stay
whole, they don’t break apart – and then adjust your sugar levels.After four to six months, you’re done!”The beads can be expensive, she says, but they
can make fiscal sense to a small-scale production like Casa Dumetz, and they
allow a creative winemaker like Ms. Magdesvki to push the envelope while
creating something new.

“There are plenty of big, traditional
sparklers on the market, and mine is not that,” she admits, reiterating, “It’s
just fun.”

And for Mr. Fiolek, ventures like this
“prove my point about diversity,” he says.“And that’s why sparkling wine in Santa Barbara County is becoming a
natural.”

As part of
the myriad holiday events taking place in Santa Barbara wine country this
month, Zaca Mesa Winery is going Hollywood.This Saturday night, from 6-9pm, the classic Christmas movie “Elf,”
starring Will Ferrell, will be screened under the stars and amidst the
vines.Tickets are $10 ($8 if you’re a
club member); find out more at www.zacamesa.com.

The winery
will have wine for sale there, too, of course, including the many stellar Rhone
creations by winemaker Eric Mohseni.Perfect.Sipping something like his
easy-going, approachable, vibrant Z Cuvee blend of syrah, mourvedre and
grenache can mirror Ferrell’s imp-inspired antics quite nicely.I find Mohseni’s aromatic roussanne to be a
particularly fun sipper, too.

So this got
me thinking.As we start to sort through
our DVD – maybe VHS? – collection for our favorite holiday flicks to watch this
month, let’s not pop open just any bottle of wine.Reliving a heartwarming classic may require something
special in our glass.Your taste – both
in movies and wines – may differ.But
for it’s worth, here’s what my family and I will be watching, and sipping, this
Christmas season.

A Christmas Story

We can all
of relate to Ralphie Parker, the 9-year-old whose obsession with a Red Ryder BB
Gun is the plot driver in this 1983 classic.It’s an emotional rollercoaster ride for the poor kid, who’s admonished
repeatedly for wanting the potentially dangerous toy so badly, and who hears
“You’ll shoot your eye out!” more times than any kid should.In the end, Ralphie’s wish does come true
and, though he almost does in fact shoot his eye out, he’ll admit it was the
best toy he ever got. So when enjoying
this film, consider splurging on a red wine that you’ve long craved; one that
you’ve secretly wished someone had gifted you, or that you hadn’t put off
buying so long.Like a cult cabernet
from Napa or a fancy Chateauneuf du Pape.For me, this might be a bottle of Silver Oak or Opus One.And if I’m going to be varietal-specific, I
might drink zinfandel with this flick; much like Ralphie’s toy tale, I find that
big, rich zins – Opolo out of Paso has a couple of good ones -- often don’t
deliver with the first few sips; but persistence, and letting the open bottle
breathe for awhile, even days, can finally bring those round, jammy, chocolaty
flavors I wanted so badly.

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation

My wife’s
family introduced me to this 1989 comedy starring Chevy Chase; it’s their
venerable must-watch film each Christmas.And let’s be honest: wine may not be the ultimate sipper while watching
Clark Griswold’s sequence of misfortunes; they are often painful because they tend
to be so relatable, from the underappreciated attempts at holiday decorating to
the family member you really hoped would be a no-show this year.Eggnog – the adult, spiked variety, which is
readily consumed throughout the film – might be the best fit.Or whiskey; when Clark asks his dad how he
used to get through the messy holiday season, the older Griswold retorts, “I
had a lot of help from Jack Daniels.”But this film is mostly about laughs, and the wine you drink while you
watch has got to be easy to drink and fun to share.And it’s got to be inexpensive.Like a rosé, whose hues are apropos for the
season anyway.Or any affordable red
from hot spots like California, Chile, Italy or Spain.And when you get to the scene where Bing
Crosby sings “Mele Kalikimaka” as Clark gazes longingly at the pool, break for
a mai tai.

Polar Express

This Tom
Hanks vehicle from 2004 is magical in more ways than one.From a movie-making standpoint, the
technology – which animates characters by capturing the movements of real-life
actors – is fascinating to see.And from
a story-telling perspective – including the bittersweet reminder that our
ability (or is it our willingness?) to believe evaporates with age – the film
tugs at the heart strings.I am the
proud father of two young boys who wholeheartedly know that Santa is real, and
I have already taken time this season to sit between them on the couch and
enjoy this film.And as we watched, I
relished Andrew Murray’s “Tous les Jours,” a deliciously accessible blend of
syrah grapes from both Santa Ynez and Paso Robles.Interestingly, the wine’s multi-faceted
nature mirrors Hank’s performance; he plays six roles, including Santa
Claus.But more importantly, its ripe
berry flavors and uncomplicated mouth feel allowed me to enjoy a great wine
while still being able to fully focus on a special moment with my sons.Anything mulled would work with this movie,
too.

Miracle on 34th Street

Easily, the
second greatest Christmas movie of all time.And, again, a reminder that this is the season when leaving pragmatism
aside is preferred.By the end of the
movie, I believe just as fervently as Natalie Wood’s young character that Kris
Kringle (played to Oscar-winning perfection by English actor Edmund Gwenn) is,
with a doubt, the real Santa Claus.There have been several coloration attempts made on this film, but
watching it in its original black and white glory is the best way to go.Aside from being heartwarming, there’s
elegance to this movie that I love.Made
in 1947, it’s a glimpse at a simpler era, when personal affectations rather
than texts and pings defined human interaction.That down-to-earth sophistication reminds me of a fine pinot noir, a
wine that can display finesse in the mouth while delivering earthy, fruity, raw
flavors.Visually, with its generally
lean, crimson colors, it can be beautiful – and the only tinge you need against
a black and white screen. Pinots I’ve
savored lately include Gainey, Whitcraft and Hitching Post.

It’s a Wonderful Life

Easily, the
number one Christmas move of all time, and one of the best movies ever
made.As George Bailey, actor James
Stewart takes us on an emotional ride that perhaps only the holiday can evoke –
and all emotions we can all understand, from gripping pain to joyful
exultation.George, with the help of his
guardian angel, goes from utter desperation to being “the richest man in town,”
and reminds us that it’s the people around us, not the gifts under a tree, that
matter most.A simple message best told
during this special season.And there’s
no right wine here.As you watch, you
simply sip what is special to you.For
me, it might be Zaca Mesa’s Black Bear Block Syrah, which I popped open that
evening on the sand when my wife said, “Yes.”Whatever it is, think of a wine that conjures emotion, or a memory that
brings a smile.And remember that in
“It’s a Wonderful Life,” wine -- as part of a housewarming gift that George
bestows upon a neighbor family – is believed to ensure “that joy and prosperity
may reign forever.”Very fitting.Just make sure you break for a glass of
bubbly – and raise it high – any time you hear a bell ring.

Happy viewing
and Merry Christmas.

Gabe Saglie wishes his favorite actor of all
time, Peter Sellers, had made a Christmas movie.He’s also senior editor for www.travelzoo.com and can be reached via email at gabesaglie@yahoo.com.

Happy
Thanksgiving, and good luck.I’m
speaking to you, Thanksgiving feast host, who probably rose before this very
paper was delivered this morning to—anxiously and excitedly – prep what may be
the most important meal of the year.May
this thought help comfort you, however: once all your blessings are counted,
the merits of any meal will pale by comparison.

And I’m
speaking to you, too, guest-in-waiting.I know your anxiety well, so good luck.The wine you bring to dinner tonight, after all, will enjoy the
attention, if not the scrutiny, worthy of a meal anticipated for months by an
entire nation.

But here’s a
thought that might soothe you: the Thanksgiving meal is eclectic enough, and
diverse enough, that whatever you bring is bound to match at least something on
the table or, perhaps more importantly, impress at least someone seated around
it.For what it’s worth, my easiest
suggestion is sparkling wine; its celebratory fizz is fitting, for sure, and its
merits for matching a wide range of foods are well-tested.

To offer you
more noteworthy suggestions, though, I turned to three local chefs who,
themselves, have plenty of reason to be thankful.Each of these three men has recently opened a
restaurant in an admittedly competitive arena, and their business is
flourishing.What’s more, their knack
for pairing food with wine is renowned.

Ron True, Arlington Tavern

I ran into
Chef Ron True at the recent Bouillabaisse Festival, held at Brander Vineyard to
benefit Hospice of Santa Barbara.I was
happy to be among a small group of very lucky food judges.True was happy, too; he won first place in
the Classic Bouillabaisse category.

This
talented gastronome opened his Arlington Tavern along W. Victoria Street in
downtown Santa Barbara just seven months ago.But already he’s making a splash with his comfort food-done-right, with
starters like crispy pork belly and heirloom tomato salad and mains that range
from filet mignon to lamb shank to fried chicken.And yes, he’s got bouillabaisse on the menu,
too.

Arlington
Tavern will, in fact, be open for Thanksgiving dinner today, with seatings
starting at 2pm.Aside from regular menu
items, the restaurant will feature a four-course feast with wonderfully
traditional foods, like turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and cranberry
relish.There’s a homemade pumpkin
cheesecake with spiced apples for dessert.“As someone who’s now not only a chef but also an owner, it’s always a
joy having a lot of people at the restaurant,” True tells me.

His turkey
technique takes some doing.“I cook the
dark meat and white meat separately, because they cook at different times, and
put brine on the turkey to give it flavor throughout and to reduce the
possibility of bacteria,” True says.He
also roasts the bones to make a hearty stock base for gravy.

And his wine
pick came quickly: Zaca Mesa Winery’s Z Cuvee, a grenache-mourvedre-syrah blend
by winemaker Eric Mohseni.“It’s great
for Thanksgiving,” True says, “because it has a broad spectrum and is easy to
drink.There’s a fair amount of tannin
structure, plus balance of fruit, so it has a good chance of pairing well with
several items on the table.”

In wine
distributor circles, word has it that Arlington Tavern moves more Z Cuvee than
any other restaurant in the country – up to five cases a month.After tonight, that number may be that much
easier to hit.

David Cecchini, Cecco Ristorante

Chef David
Cecchini’s storied culinary past includes the Wine Cask, the popular Restaurant
Nu in Santa Barbara and Nuuva in Ballard; the last two, he also owned.He taps his Italian roots at his newest
kitchen, Cecco Ristorante along First Street in Solvang, which opened its doors
some 18 months ago.But it’s been such a
success – the chef credits Solvang’s burgeoning appeal as a wine destination
and the city’s steady contingency of crowd-drawing weekend events – that
Cecchini is already looking for a second location, probably in Santa Barbara.

Tonight,
though, Cecco is closed, as the chef heads to his parents’ home in Solvang for
a gathering of about 15 people.His
turkey secret echoes that of Matt Nichols: “Stuff it and roast it like a
chicken,” he tells me.And his wine
insight is refreshing: “It’s not pairing wine with the food that’s all that
difficult, it’s pairing it with the people that are going to be there,” he
says.To that end, there may be strength
in numbers.Cecchini adds, “You should
have a few different wines on the table and that way people can pick what they
want.”

I push him
to pick one he’s sure to bring to Mom and Dad’s tonight, and Cecchini chooses
something familiar: a sangiovese he, himself, makes under an eponymous
label.He’s made sangiovese on three
vintages with the help of friend, and celebrated Palmina and Brewer-Clifton
winemaker, Steve Clifton.With the 2008
vintage still aging in bottle, he picks the 2007 wine – an 85-15
sangiovese-merlot blend made with grapes from Honea and Eleven Oaks
Vineyards.“It’s got good fruit – not a
ton of fruit, but good fruit – and it’s balanced really well and has good body
on it,” he says.“It works across the
board.”And that might be all you can hope
for when it comes to the very varied Thanksgiving meal.

By the way, Cecco,
which is usually open seven days a week, will reopen tomorrow.

Matt Nichols, Sides Hardware and Shoes – a
Brothers Restaurant

After a
legendary 10-year stint hosting hungry crowds at the landmark Mattei’s Tavern,
the Nichols brothers – Jeff and Matt – opened their new eatery this past
April.The quirky name is a nod to the
entrepreneurs who housed the same Los Olivos building at the turn of the 20th
century.These days, the brothers’
restaurant is a destination all its own in the heart of wine country.

At Mattei’s,
Thanksgiving night was traditionally one of the Nichols’ busiest of the
year.“We’d have about 400 people come
in,” recalls Matt.But this year,
because of more limited space at Sides, the restaurant is closed and the
siblings will be enjoying tonight’s meal separately.“I won’t be responsible for the Thanksgiving
meal for the first time in years,” rejoices Matt, who’ll be at his in-laws’
place in Santa Maria.But his tip for
novice cooks is simple: “Think of it as just cooking a big chicken.”

And, as the
restaurant’s wine list keeper, his advice for Thanksgiving bottle seekers is
simple, too.“I love the pinots by Rick
Longoria, like the one from his Fe Ciega Vineyard,” he says.He quickly recommends Longoria’s “Lovely
Rita” pinot, too – with fruit sourced from the celebrated Fe Ciega and Bien
Nacido Vineyards – as an equally delicious yet simpler wine.And his white of choice is winemaker Nick de
Luca’s brand new personal project, Ground Effect; Sides features the 2011
“Gravity Check” – a chenin blanc, albarino, pinot gris blend – by the
bottle.De Luca’s philosophy “is what
Thanksgiving is all about,” says Matt.“Taking something produced in the ground--a pumpkin, a grape, whatever –
and turning it into something special for a special day.”

And if all
else fails, Matt’s parting thought made the most sense to me: “To help
alleviate some of the stress of the day, just start drinking some of these
wines a little bit earlier than everyone else.”

About Me

Welcome to the online home of Gabe Saglie. Gabe is Senior Editor for Travelzoo and a respected travel contributor for dozens of TV news programs and national shows. Gabe is also a longtime wine and food writer based in Santa Barbara, California, where he lives with his wife, two boys and daughter.